Patty Webster, Improvement Advisor, Community Engagement
March 17, 2026
Planning for National Healthcare Decisions Day - April 16th, 2026
Helping people share their wishes for care through the end of life
Our website
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Free tools (in multiple languages and audio)
Starting a Conversation
Choosing a Health Care Proxy
Being a Health Care Proxy
Talking with a Health Care Team
Caregivers of People with Alzheimer’s or Other Forms of Dementia
Caregivers of a Child with Serious Illness
People with a Serious Illness
My Health Checklist
National Healthcare Decisions Day
TCP’s NHDD Theme:
Talk about it
NHDD week: daily theme…resources/ideas to share
April 10th : Start with YOU (self)…review the Conversation Starter Guide or “What Matters to Me Workbook and think about your current wishes (revised, the same, or new)
April 11th: Promote NHDD on your social media platforms…use our ready made toolkit for samples
April 12th: Engage and talk with a family member, friend, someone important to you…share proxy guides, blog stories
April 13th: Support for caregivers… share dementia, pediatrics, and health care team guides
April 14th: Bring NHDD to where you live, work, pray, and learn…reach out to health care professionals, clergy, professional services orgs/individuals (estate attorneys, elder care lawyers, financial planners, etc.), colleges/universities, high schools
Apr 15th: Ready yourself and others for conversations…set up a call/in-person visit, draft an email, review our list of jump starters to start the conversation and pick one that works for your person(s)
�Apr 16th: Today’s the day! Make your wishes known!... Talk about it and share 5 Wishes®, PREPARE™ for Your Care, letters, any other resources to help
Easy actions/links to share
If you want to post something on your website or share some links in an email, try these:
Share a link to NHDD page(s)
Links to a variety of resources to help make, discuss, and document future healthcare wishes and decisions.
TCP and Other groups
Messaging to remember
Talk up the positives These services and care improve peoples’ lives. Don’t lead with dying
Present choices for every step At every stage of an illness, we have choices
Use stories Use positive and aspirational stories and don’t bombard with statistics
Invite dialogue—and not just once The call to action is to talk with someone
Invoke a new team Patients, people who matter to them, health care providers, & community all have a role
Imagery matters Use positive and aspirational images without looking too “cheesy”
seriousillnessmessaging.org
“We’ll figure this out together”
Starts with you: Walk the talk
Massachusetts General Hospital clinicians
The Starter Guide: Preparation
Exemplify - taking this to your community
Live
Work
Pray
Learn
Plan out your strategy
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Getting started questions
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What do you hope to accomplish?
Who do you want to reach? How many, by when?
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Getting started questions
1
What do you hope to accomplish?
Who do you want to reach? How many, �by when?
What actions do you hope people will take?
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Getting started questions
1
What do you hope to accomplish?
Who do you want to reach? How many, �by when?
What actions do you want to support people to take?
How and where do you want to reach them?
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Examples
Examples
Getting started questions
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What will you do to get � there? And, with whom?
What do you need to know about your target audience before you begin?
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Getting started questions
2
What will you do to get � there? And, with whom?
What do you need to know about your target audience before you begin?
Who else is already doing work on this topic in your community?
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Possible external community partners
Death over Drafts
Community Events to Spark Curiosity & Connection Around End of Life
A Perfect Pairing with Advance Care Planning
Collaborations
UNC Health Pardee
Hendersonville, NC
Princeton Senior Resource Center
Princeton, NJ
Getting started questions
2
What will you do to get � there? And, with whom?
What do you need to know about your target audience before you begin?
Who else is already doing work on this topic in your community?
Who are respected leaders or organizations that could help you advocate for the importance of this work?
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Local leaders walking the talk
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PeaceHealth, Bellingham, WA
Choose Your Person Campaign
Year-long including:
Link: https://hov.wistia.com/medias/rb42fivl8f
Advance Directives Videos
English: https://hov.wistia.com/medias/aoo6ysqtpc
Spanish: https://hov.wistia.com/medias/uqkujphkqf
Getting started questions
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What will you do to get � there? And, with whom?
What do you need to know about your target audience before you begin?
Who else is already doing work on this topic in your community?
Who are respected leaders or organizations that could help you advocate for the importance of this work?
Who will be responsible for actually doing this work in your community?
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Getting started questions
2
What will you do to get � there? And, with whom?
What do you need to know about your target audience before you begin?
Who else is already doing work on this topic in your community?
Who are respected leaders or organizations that could help you advocate for the importance of this work?
Who will be responsible for actually doing this work in your community?
What do you need to get started?
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Example
IPRO and Alliant Health Solutions QIN-QIO: https://quality.allianthealth.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Demystify-Health-Care-Decision-Making-Ready-Set-Talk-Event-Planning-Calendar-FINAL_508.pdf
Getting started questions�
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How will you know if you’ve reached what you’ve set out to accomplish?
What can you measure to track your goal?
How will you capture and learn from successes and challenges?
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More ideas from others
Examples from NHDD 2025: Media outreach, raising awareness �
Social Media Campaigns: e.g., Posts on Facebook and LinkedIn, Used NHDD toolkit on Instagram
Traditional Media/send outs: e.g., Newspaper article, Flyers sent to all hospital staff
Media/podcasts/digital platforms: e.g., Web landing page with NHDD resources, Blogs, Podcast: Mourning Dove Medical Presents Dr. G at the Heart of Healthcare with special focus on NHDD
What are the local media outlets you might reach out to?
Examples from NHDD 2025: In-person events� �
Presentations & Workshops: e.g., Presentation on The Conversation Project at a Senior Living center, ACP workshop at local library, Community education class
Open Houses & Info Tables: e.g., Open house at the ACP office, Information tables at 16 medical sites
Community gathers: e.g., Death over Dinner, movie screenings/post-movie conversations
Small and sweet: e.g. Lunch with individuals, talks with individual clients in hospice and their family members
What might you do in YOUR community to foster connections and relationships?
Ways to engage with TCP’s network
Share and connect with each other
Sign up for our newsletter
*above can be found on theconversationproject.org/get-involved
Follow us, reshare, tag us on social media – USE #NHDD
Facebook: @The Conversation Project
Instagram: @convoproject
Questions?